Social worker jailed for defiling boy in State care appeals conviction

Woman argues Facebook messages exchanged between her and the boy should not have been put before trial jury

At the Court of Appeal, Dermot Cahill SC, for the woman, submitted the request for Facebook messages between the appellant and the boy that were used in the trial was not made by the requisite body.

A social worker jailed for defiling a boy who was in the care of the State at the time has launched an appeal against her conviction, arguing Facebook messages they exchanged should not have been put before the trial jury.

The 44-year-old woman, who cannot be named in order to protect the identity of her victim, appealed the conviction on the grounds that a request for the messages by the State to the social media giant were applied for under the wrong section of a 2008 treaty on mutual legal assistance between Ireland and the United States.